Understanding Insurance Companies and How They Handle Car Accident Claims

November 21, 2024

Being involved in a car accident can be a terrifying, traumatic experience. In many cases, it’s also the start of a long, difficult claims process. Many people expect that filing an insurance claim means they will quickly receive a fair settlement, but the truth is that most insurance companies try to pay out as little as possible. A car accident attorney can help you negotiate with your insurer, but before the process begins, it can help to have a basic knowledge of how the process works. Here’s some help understanding insurance companies and how they handle car accident claims.

Never accept your insurance company’s first offer. Most insurers will start by offering a low settlement in hopes that you’ll take it. The best way to increase your chances of getting a fair settlement is to work with an attorney.

The Initial Report

While you can file the initial accident report yourself, it’s often a good idea to allow a car accident attorney to file it for you. This is important for a couple of reasons. Because insurers tend to want to pay out as little as they possibly can, they will look for anything you say that they can then use to “prove” you aren’t hurt as badly as you claim. Even something as simple as saying “I feel a little better now” a few hours after your accident can harm your case. When your attorney deals with the insurer for you, you don’t have to worry about accidentally sabotaging your case.

Your attorney can also help by ensuring your accident report is as complete as possible. Usually, they will include the following information (and often much more):

A copy of the police report for your accident
Information about where and when the accident happened
Photos of vehicle damage
Photos of your injuries
Copies of your medical bills
Badge numbers and names of responding officers.

Your lawyer will likely still need to negotiate with the insurer to get you a fair settlement. However, by making the initial report as thorough as possible, they may help your claim get resolved faster.

Investigating the Accident

The Process Starts With Fact-Finding

Once an insurance company receives the report, they begin investigating the circumstances of the accident itself. This usually involves sending a trained insurance adjuster to the scene of the accident to collect evidence and determine what happened. It also involves studying the police report and interviewing responding officers and witnesses. A thorough investigation helps the insurer determine who was at fault for the accident. It also helps verify the severity of your injuries.

Investigating the accident and the surrounding circumstances doesn’t end with a single site visit. Most insurance companies will also keep an eye on what you’re doing on social media. Because even innocent posts can sometimes be interpreted as evidence your injuries aren’t as bad as you say, many lawyers advise you to simply avoid posting about the accident at all.

Investigating Your Medical Claims and Other Damages

Insurance companies want to assess your injuries — and evaluate any other damages you’re claiming — for themselves. Sending copies of your medical bills is a starting point to help them do this, but in many cases, insurers will want to discuss injuries with your healthcare providers to verify that you aren’t exaggerating. In general, the more severe (and costly) your injuries, the more scrutiny you can expect from the insurer.

The insurance company will use its findings from this investigation to determine how much it wants to offer as a settlement. Unfortunately, most early settlement offers are very low. Your legal team may need to conduct its own interviews with your doctors and medical experts to prove that you’re entitled to more compensation.

While receiving compensation for your injuries is most important, you also deserve to have your car repaired or replaced without paying out of pocket. The insurance company will need to assess the damage done to your car, and they will usually contact repair shops to determine how expensive a repair is likely to be. Depending on the extent of the damage, the insurance company should either pay to repair your vehicle or declare it a total loss. If your car is a total loss, this means that the cost to repair the car exceeds the value of the car itself. In this case, the insurance company will just pay you the car’s fair market value so you can buy another.

Any time you’re dealing with an insurance company, having legal representation is critically important. Call Wapner Newman at (215) 569-0900 to schedule your free consultation today.

Negotiating a Settlement

This is where having a car accident lawyer on your side becomes even more important. Many people without legal representation assume that an insurer’s settlement offer is final. They often experience financial stress due to the accident and are thankful to be offered any compensation at all. However, the initial offer is just the starting point of negotiations.

Legally speaking, you are allowed to negotiate with the insurance company yourself — there is nothing requiring you to retain an attorney. However, in virtually every case, having an attorney on your side will result in a higher settlement amount. There are two main reasons why:

Attorneys understand what tactics work when it comes to negotiating with insurers.
Insurers know that if an attorney isn’t satisfied with a settlement offer, your case will go to trial.

During negotiations, your legal team will need to demonstrate why you deserve more than the insurer is offering. They may send proof of the wages you’ve lost as a result of your injury and records of more medical expenses. If your injury is severe enough that it will impact you for the rest of your life, your lawyers may obtain sworn testimony from medical professionals detailing the specifics of how the injury will affect you.

Going to Trial

In most car accident cases, both sides are able to reach a settlement agreement. Only about three percent of civil cases end up going to trial, and that’s a good thing for both sides. Trials can take a significant amount of time, they’re very costly, and they’re always uncertain. The civil trial process is similar to a criminal trial. Both sides present evidence to a judge (and possibly a jury), and they get the opportunity to cross-examine any witnesses. However, the verdict of a civil trial doesn’t result in a criminal conviction. Instead, if the judge rules that the other driver was at fault, that driver (or their insurance company) will be ordered to pay you a certain amount of money.

If you win a case at trial, the amount a judge orders the responsible party to give you will almost always be more than you would receive in a settlement. However, there’s also a chance that you will lose the case and receive no compensation at all. If your case ends up going to trial, your lawyer will be able to help you prepare.

When You’re Dealing With Insurance, the Right Lawyer Matters

A Skilled Negotiator Makes a Difference

When it comes to negotiating a settlement, insurers know they can often fool unsuspecting drivers into accepting too-low settlements. They also know that they can’t fool car accident lawyers. In the aftermath of a car accident, the most important thing you can do for yourself besides seeking medical treatment is to work with an experienced attorney. A lawyer can negotiate with the insurer for you and increase your likelihood of a fair settlement. At Wapner Newman, we care about our clients — and that translates to great results.

If you’ve been injured in a car accident you didn’t cause, the responsible party should be held accountable. Call Wapner Newman at (215) 569-0900 to book a free consultation and see how we may be able to help you.